Cinco de Mayo: A Brief History

The Battle of Puebla took place on 5 May 1862, near the city of Puebla during the French intervention in Mexico. The battle ended in a victory for the Mexican Army over the occupying French forces. The French eventually overran the Mexicans in subsequent battles, but the Mexican victory at Puebla against a much better equipped and larger[5] French army provided a significant morale boost to the Mexican army and also helped slow the French army's advance towards Mexico City. There were a total of 10,540 soldiers in the war. 462 French soldiers died in combat. Only 83 Mexican soldiers died in the battle. http://www.mexonline.com/cinco-de-mayo.htm